[Texgreen] Deep-seated corruption at TxDOT

[Roger Baker]

TxDOT is now notoriously corrupted by ties to the special interests =20
involving road contracting and suburban sprawl developers. So much so =20=

that even the conservatives who understand the situation are angry. =20
Paul Burka (who supported Bush for president, BTW), in the December =20
2006 Texas Monthly magazine, reports on the Trans-Texas Corridor =20
plan. Here are some excerpts:



For TTC-35, Cintra-Zachry paid $I billion to TxDOT for the right to =20
collect tolls for the next 50 years. The way the company will get its =20=

money back is by raising its tolls over those 50 years, largely =20
unrestrained by the public sector. In effect, TxDOT=92s =93free money=94 =
=20
amounts to a tax on our children and our grandchildren.

The comprehensive development agreements with private companies =20
contain non-compete clauses that prohibit TxDOT from building =20
competing new roads or upgrading existing highways. TxDOT will no =20
longer be able to respond o the transportation needs of the state, =20
other than to say : If you don=92t like the traffic, use the toll road. =20=

John Carona, R, Dallas, the new chairman of the Senate committee that =20=

deals with transportation, has to say on the subject: =93Within thirty =20=

years=92 time, under existing comprehensive development agreements , =20
we=92ll bring free roads in this state to a condition of ruin.=94

The 2003 legislature passed the omnibus transportation bill that =20
authorized concessions and other mammoth changes in the way we build =20
highways. Few lawmakers knew what was in the bill. The Senate gave it =20=

only cursory inspection. The result was a scheme in which TxDOT will =20
be taking in billions of dollars from the private sector with no =20
oversight by the Legislature, no responsibility to say how the money =20
will be used, and no assurance for the public that free roads, as =20
well as toll roads, will benefit from that money. Governor Perry =20
should insist on transparency, accountability, and oversight for =20
highways. Otherwise, we are headed for the worst public policy fiasco =20=

in my lifetime.